Tag Archives: Chapman Photography

Vendor Reveal: Chapman Photography

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WELCOME to the next in our new series of “Vendor Reveals”.  Through our Disneymooner forums we’ve found our members have used a number and variety of Vendors for their Disney Wedding and we’ve been asking those Vendors to reveal just a little more about their business……. and themselves!

Our next Vendor Reveal falls to an “outside” wedding photographer…. a very popular choice amongst Disney Brides

What is the name of your business/service and what is your offering?
Chapman Photography ~ Randy Chapman, specializing in Disney Fairytale weddings and honeymoon Photography.  We also photograph Disney Vacations and Family Reunions!

What is your name? – Randy Chapman

FantasiaSam “shoots” Randy at her own Disney Fairytale Wedding

What makes your business/service unique?
With 17 years shooting Disney Fairytale weddings, I have a great reputation for capturing unique, creative and natural fun moments. Over these years I have extensively communicated with and worked alongside Disney’s staff which aid towards a seamless day for the Bride and Groom!

How did you get started and how long have you been doing this?
I discovered my talents when shooting in New York City,, after shooting great upcoming models for 2 years, I moved back to my native State and City, Orlando Florida, where I pursued my talents in the wedding field.

After shooting weddings for 6 years, I was recognized by Andrea Rotondo in 1997. Andrea was a past Disney Bride in 1996 and founded the Disneymooner list and Unofficial Disney Wedding Guide… Andrea posted a link to my website and from there, history was in the making!!

After 17 years  numerous awards and thousands of Disney weddings, Disney Fairytale Weddings and Honeymoons is my home of 90% of all my weddings.

When not working a wedding at Walt Disney World (or another venue for that matter) what are you doing?
On my days off from shooting Disney weddings, I love shooting Family sessions, Honeymoon couples, engagement shoots, and try to get in 14 miles of biking every other day!!

What is your favorite part about your job?
The favorite part about my job is everything!! What better job can you have, do what you love to and go to work, where that day is one of the happiest days of another person’s life!! Then to see how excited a Bride and Groom are when receiving their photos!!

I also love shooting the engagement this is a great way to get to know my couples before the big day

What types of wedding packages do you offer Disney brides?
My Photography packages are customized for each Couple to fit their budget, in some cases full wedding coverage will include engagement session or Honeymoon session.  There are printed packages on my website www.chapmanphotography.com or email info@chapmanphotography.com   407-841-2300 cell 407-341-0761.  All the Packages include the master DVD with all the copyrights!

What is your favorite wedding trend right now in relation to your business/service?
My Disney couples are less traditional and using a lot of bright colors, props, Trashing the Dress, shooting Honeymoons, Social Networking Facebook for Sneak Peaks. Checkout my Facebook.

What’s your favorite thing about doing Disney weddings?
One of many favorite  experiences of shooting Disney Weddings is working with Disney Fairytale Weddings Staff, they all do a great job. Another is shooting Cinderella’s coach, all the Charters and Monorail.

What was your strangest request when working a Disney Wedding?
I could write the top 10 strangest requests but I will keep it short   A reception at the Grand Floridian  approximately 200 guests and everyone is at their tables eating Cake… the Bride then had the DJ announce my name and request a dance with me…..eeek not a pretty site !!! Hips don’t lie!!!

What’s your most memorable moment that you have taken away from a Disney wedding?
The most Memorable Moment was at the last-minute of a wedding I was shooting my Bride asked me to walk her down the aisle at the Wedding Pavilion as her brother was delayed at the airport.

Also a family of 3 sisters and 1 brother all had their wedding at Disney which I photographed and I’ve been shooting their family portrait sessions every year since!

JUST FOR FUN – we asked Randy to answer these questions

If you were getting married at WDW where would you have your ceremony and reception and why?
If I was to get married at WDW it would be at the Disney Wedding Pavilion this being Florida and the weather changing by the hour, there’s no need for a back-up location plus it has A/C and an awesome location for photos.

My reception would be the Atlantic Dance Hall, because the location is at the Boardwalk which makes for great photos outside.

It also has an outside Balcony great for viewing the Illuminations at Epcot and I can make the photos look like we were there!! The inside is great, no need  for a whole lot of decorations and it has a great dance floor… perfect!

Who is your favorite Disney character and why?
Pluto has always been very playful and fun with photos!!

Which is your favorite Disney attraction and why?
Favorite Disney Attraction is Haunted Mansion, it brings a lot of memories, being born and raised in Orlando, our family went to Disney a lot in the 70’s even though the Haunted Mansion had a 45 min wait I was there. Not really an attraction but I love Eating Around The World at Epcot.

FINALLY

Why should a member of our Disneymooner Forums choose your service?
I believe with my vast knowledge and 17 years specializing in shooting Disney Fairytale Weddings, under very affordable packages, I can be of a great advantage for my future Disney Couples. My Experience in knowing all the great locations for photos whether you choose a Wishes, Escape, or Memories Wedding, I will keep the Wedding Couple on the required timetable throughout the day.

All the Disney Fairytale Wedding Staff  know me and we work great together as a team. I enjoy, being a part of making dreams come true with beautiful wedding photos.

90% of all my weddings are at WDW! I have a great following of past, present and future Disney Wedding Couples including many from the Disneymooners that will give you their experience with me, many have continued to come back to me after their wedding for Vacation shoots and/or Family Sessions around the Walt Disney World Properties, which I believe is a great testament to my work! We also offer Engagement and Honeymoon sessions at any of Walt Disney World Resorts.

Randy Chapman
Disney Weddings  Chapman Photography
Studio 407-841-2300
Cell 407-341-0761
Fax 407-841-2193

www.chapmanphotography.com
Info@chapmanphotography.com
Facebook

Thanks to Randy, Chapman Photography for answering our questions as part of our Vendor Reveal series, if you would like your work revealed to our readers please contact yourfairytalewedding@disneymooner.com

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A Disney Bride’s Favorite Moment: Sam

Posted in Favorite Moments by

Some of our Disneymooner Forum members have been sharing their favorite moments from their Disney Wedding

By Sam

FantasiaSam Favorite Disney Wedding Moment

I think I have found this to be one of the hardest questions to answer because it goes without saying that sharing the journey, the day and the celebrations with my family and friends made it a whole moment in itself however there’s one guy that was really responsible for giving me, personally, a kick out of the whole DFTW experience and he was my wedding planner.

He held me hand throughout the process and he was ultimately responsible for making me feel like I was THE most important person in WDW that day…. I felt like I had the Secret Service all around me with their mikes and earpieces – this photo below was taken by a member of the UK DIS who saw myself, my wedding planner and my BM’s from a distance waiting for the “go, go, go” by the other Wedding CM’s who were up at the Yacht Club Gazebo… it was such a “pee in my pants” moment

A Disney Bride’s Favorite Moment: Gina

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Some of our Disneymooner Forum members have been sharing their favorite moments from their Disney Wedding

By Gina

My favorite wedding memory and many of my guests favorite memory too happened during our first dance. We had our reception outside at the Whitehall Patio and as we were sharing our first dance the monorail stopped and everyone on board waved. It was magic that you would only get at Disney and it was amazing. My guests were loving it! I felt things had come full circle. As a kid I dreamed of a Disney wedding going by the pavilion on the monorail and now I probably created that dream in the minds of the kids on board LOL. At least I’d like to think so!

Disneymooner Favorite Moment
Thank you for sharing your favorite moment Gina.  To read more Disneymooner’s favorite moments please visit our forums.

A Disney Bride’s Favorite Moment: Marilyn

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Some of our Disneymooner Forum members have been sharing their favorite moments from their Disney Wedding

By Marilyn

I think mine is a bit random. After all my years of dreaming of a Disney wedding, and a 15 months of planning a Disney wedding, I have one picture that brings it all together for me…

Disneymooner Favorite Moment

I was so excited for everything and I loved the reactions from all our friends and family. Priceless. Our wedding came together better than I could’ve ever imagined. But, being here on the Disneymooners, planning my wedding, researching, and reading past bride wedding recaps and looking at their wedding pictures, this shot was something I was so excited to get.

After the ceremony, Randy, our amazing photographer, took us around the Boardwalk taking pictures. We got to the photo booth and I knew I was about to create a life’s pause of our day that I would always cherish. This picture of us in front of that photo booth, is my constant reminder that after all the dreaming and planning, I had finally had my Disney wedding!

Thank you for sharing your favorite moment Marilyn.  To read more Disneymooner’s favorite moments please visit our forums.

Featured Venue Fridays: Ariel’s

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When I first started planning my Disney Wedding I spent a lot of time searching the internet trying to find out as much as possible about different venues for a Wedding Reception. I was immediately drawn to Ariel’s.

For those that don’t know, Ariel’s is regarded as one of Disney Fairy Tale Wedding’s “Special Venues” located at Disney’s Beach Club this venue used to be an upscale seafood restaurant for Resort guests but sadly closed to the public back in the mid 90’s. However the good news is that it became a space used for Conventions and Weddings.

When I stumbled upon Ariel’s I realized that this special venue came with a lot of pros that was going to keep my wedding budget very much in check. As our wedding ceremony was going to be held at The Yacht Club Gazebo by having my wedding reception at Ariel’s I wasn’t going to have to pay out transportation costs for my guests as Ariel’s is just a short walk from the Gazebo! Not having a ballroom for our wedding reception was important because I needed a venue that our Disneyphile guests couldn’t experience any other time themselves so Ariel’s now had 2 big ticks against it. Finally I wouldn’t have to have to pay extra for DFTW to lay a dance floor because part of the flooring was stone-work perfect for dancing… tick #3 and a done deal!

First Dance at Ariel’s

Ariel’s can accommodate up to 80 guests but we only had just over 40 so we were able to use part of the split-level space as the bar area and for the pre-reception cocktail hour.

“Punch anyone”

We then had a 4-course meal served, although these days I believe DFTW push this venue for buffets only, but our meal was followed by dancing and we had a wonderful afternoon. You could almost see the children from the nearby Stormalong Bay pin themselves to the windows outside eyeing us all with envy as we celebrated our wedding with our special guests …

Room to swing a …. Mouse!

Dance floor below and windows looking out onto Stormalong Bay

I know our guests still talk of how they were lucky enough to enjoy Ariel’s and it worked out to be the perfect wedding reception venue for us…. and given that we always vacation back at Walt Disney World every year we’re also lucky enough to walk by Ariel’s and give each other that knowing smile, when we hear other resort guests say to each other “oooo I wonder how you get to eat in there?”

Thank you for allowing me to share some of our wedding reception highlights with you all.  For more information on Ariel’s, including pricing minimums, site specific restrictions and wedding recaps please visit the Disneymooner Forums.